Lies In Huckleberry Finn Analysis

2087 Words5 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Huckleberry finn analysis narrative

Cameron Ramey
Gilmore
American Literature
31 October 2017
Lies and Deceit in Huckleberry Finn

In Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, there are; lies, incidents of mischief, and deep moments of trickery. Without these, the story would not be what is it now. These moments happy constantly, and throughout the book when one lie is unveiled, a new one seems to rise. Most of the characters in the novel, seems to have some sort of made up statement to keep either themselves safe, or another character in the book safe. But these lies make the characters who they are. Huck starts to lie because of his friend, Tom Sawyer who in the end is very deceitful, just to get a kick out of it. But Huck doesn’t always make things up to get himself
He learns through pranks that no matter how funny the joke is, someone could get injured as seen with Jim and when he gets bitten by the rattlesnake. He learns to judge the intent and outcome of a lie like other children do, and learns the consequences of what could happen if he lied (Mitchell, Thompson 289). He also learns to start considering others, and even shows some quality of having a high moral reasoning level (Developmental Psychology 141). Through society and his experiences with Jim, he learns that some white lies can also protect people as long as it does not lead up to more lies that would cause more problems (Ethics 378). Unlike most people who either draw the line between lying is immoral or morally wrong, he draws the line between harmful and harmless lying. His motives for lying changes over time, and changes from lying to escape punishment to lying to cover up for Jim, just like how other children change their motives over time (Stouthamer-Loeber 269). Through the Duke and the King, he learns the difference between immoral and morally correct lying. He sees that lying to deceive people and scam them out of their money is utterly wrong, and that lying like them would lead to appropriate consequences. Huck develops the ability to separate lies from sin and responsibility, and learns the value of his society (Ethics 878, Tomonari, Feiler 278). Because of his adventure down the journey, he finds his own identity after trying out numerous roles and learns the moral causes and effects of white lies, lying for protection, and lying for manipulation (Blair-Broker, Ernst

Show More
Related

  • The Theme Of Dying In The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn

    1096 Words  | 3 Pages

    Huckleberry Finn lies quite frequently in tough situations to save Jim from being a slave again. Finn’s lying has become his defense mechanism on surviving through all of the adventures he has to go through. Huck first learned this style from his father, Pap Finn. In the beginning, readers get a first view at what Pap is like and how he deals with life. He steals, cheats and lies his way in every situation. Huck’s first influence was his father so that directly influenced his decisions. “Yes, he’s got a father, but you can’t never find him these days” (Twain 6).

    Read More

  • Turning Points In Huck Finn

    1285 Words  | 3 Pages

    He gets into all sorts of conflicts that force him to battle and work his way out of them, and in turn, they propel his moral position’s evolvement. It is especially hard on Huck when it comes time to resolving moral dilemmas. He is always stuck between making his own moral decisions, be it conventional or not, or allowing influencers, his father, the widow, and society, to make the decisions for him. He can never let go of the guilt associated with taking the unconventional path and rejecting what society upholds because that is all he has ever been taught in his life. That is why it is hard to apologize to Jim at first, but given time Huck is able to muster the courage to do so because that is the right thing to do even when society says so otherwise. The same goes for helping a slave, such as Jim, escape to a free state where he can find the opportunity to reunite with his family. Ultimately, he violates the demands of society to do what is right and not contribute to the enslavement of another human being. And it is not until the end of the novel that Huck no longer views his decisions as moral failings, but instead as moral triumph because he stayed true to himself and not once did he allow society to dictate his

    Read More

  • Huck Finn Forgetfulness Quotes

    687 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the Novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Huck can seem dumb and naive at times. This tends to occur when he has to pretend to be someone else so he can conceal his identity from others. For instance, when Huck is pretending to be a long lost relative of the Wilks family that lived in England along with the Duke and the King so they could con them and make a big profit by inheriting the family's wealth. Then one day in the house on the day of the funeral of Peter Wilks, Mary Jane asks Huck if he's ever seen the king before and Huck forgot “his identity” and Mary Jane quickly becomes skeptical of Huck. She says to Huck, “Why, how you talk -- Sheffield ain’t on the sea”(175). Huck goes on to question what Mary Jane heard

    Read More

  • The Integrity and Strength of Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

    1379 Words  | 3 Pages

    Kaplan, Justin.  "Born to Trouble:  One Hundred Years of Huckleberry Finn."  Mark Twain Adventures of Huckleberry Finn:  A Case Study in Critical Controversy.  Eds. Gerald Graff and James Phelan.  Boston:  St. Martin's, 1995.  348-359.

    Read More

  • charhf Changes in Huck Finn's Character

    669 Words  | 2 Pages

    When the middle of the novel comes around Huck begins to distinguish what is right and wrong in life and begins to mature and do the right thing. He shows this when he chooses not to partake in the scam that the King and the Duke are playing on the Wilks family. Instead he takes the money back from the King and Duke to hide it because he believes it is only fair to the family. "I'm letting him rob her of her money...I feel so ornery and low...I got to steal that money somehow; and I got to steal it some way that they wont suspicion I done it" (Twain 133) This shows that Huck is starting to see the line between games and real life.

    Read More

  • Huck Finn Argumentative Essay

    1212 Words  | 3 Pages

    Huck struggles with this . Lying is often thought to be bad but in the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Huck’s lies seem justified and most are meant to protect himself or those that he cares for most.

    Read More

  • Huck Finn Coming Of Age Analysis

    2074 Words  | 5 Pages

    He mainly “learns compassion from Jim” (Pettit 94). Huck learns that tricks can hurt, no matter what people look like or what they act like. The trick also “make(s) them treat each other as persons, and democracy becomes, in their relationship, a love and respect for persons regardless of color or knowledge or belief” (Cohen 71). Tricks became a part of Huck’s life because of his “estrangement, soleness and morbidity as an outcast child; the disproportionate sadness at the center of Jim’s and his relationship; and the secrecy in which Huck’s engagement with (rather than escape from) a racist society is necessarily conducted” (Morrison 108). Tricks allows Huck to escape his morbid life and allow him to have fun, even if it means hurting someone

    Read More

  • The Character Huck Finn in The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

    1412 Words  | 3 Pages

    While Huck is traveling down the river with Jim, he must lie and often disguise himself to survive on his own to conceal his identity. Huck rebels because he does not want to follow his aunts house rules or live up to her expectations which are to conform to social norms. This means he has to dress cleanly and neatly, use manners, go to school, and be polite to everyone. Huck also is confused because he wants to get away from his abusive father who excessively drinks. Huck is afraid of his father who has beaten him and verbally abused him repeatedly therefore, his only solution is to run away. He does this by faking his own death. Curiousity overwhelms him and he wants to know how society has taken to the news of his death. In order to get some information Huck disguises himself as a girl. He meets with Judy Lawson, a local woman, and asks about the disappearance of Huck Finn. Although his disguise works well, Judy Loftus starts to test him to disguise whether Huck is really a girl. As soon as Judy says, "What's your real name? Is it Bill, or Tom, or Bob? -or what is it?"(Twain 70) Huck realizes he has no chance in pulling such pranks. When confronted with his lie Huck tells the truth and ends up making a friend who says he can count on her. Huck also tries to protect Jim from being captured by lying about himself and his situation.

    Read More

  • Why Does Huck Lie To Protect Himself

    1814 Words  | 4 Pages

    Huck then decides to fake his death which is a form of lying. In an ideal society, an abused child would go to a higher authority and turn in the cold-hearted parent. Sadly, Huck's society is not like this and consequently feels as if everyone abandoned him. Because of this, he had to take his life into his own hands and fend for himself. Huck has to lie to get out of this threatening and unsafe situation. Huck decided the best solution would be to fake his own death. This ends up being to Huck's advantage when he leaves with Jim. Another example when Huck lies to protect himself was when he first came out of hiding dresses as a girl. The reason for Huck coming out of hiding was because he was bored and wanted to hear the town gossip. The logic behind Huck dressing up as a girl is so no one recognizes him. He goes to this house and sees an old woman and thinks that she looks like a lady who tells gossip. When asked his name, he lied and responded that his name was Sarah Williams. The old woman whose name was Judith started to figure out as they were talking that "Sarah Williams" is not who she really says she

    Read More

  • Huck Finn Passage Analysis

    1327 Words  | 3 Pages

    Mark Twain’s Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is considered the great American Novel with its unorthodox writing style and controversial topics. In the selected passage, Huck struggles with his self-sense of morality. This paper will analyze a passage from Adventures of huckleberry Finn and will touch on the basic function of the passage, the connection between the passage from the rest of the book, and the interaction between form and content.

    Read More

  • The Moral Development of Huckleberry Finn

    991 Words  | 2 Pages

    Huck rejects lying early in the novel, a testament to his successful training bestowed upon him by the Widow Douglass and other townspeople. Huck begins the story by lecturing the reader that The Adventures of Tom Sawyer contained lies about him, and that everyone has lied in his or her lives (11). Huck’s admittance of the lies contained in the previous book about him demonstrates his early dedication to truth in the novel. Later, Tom forces Huck to return to the Widow Douglass where he continues learning how to be “sivilized” (11). When Huck returns, the Widow Douglass teaches him the time when lying is appropriate, improving Huck’s sometimes unreliable moral directions. After Huck spends enough time with the Widow Douglass and her sister, Miss Watson, Huck begins enjoying the routine of his new life (26). Huck, a coarse character prior to the beginning of the novel, enjoys his education more and more, and displays promise for a cultured future. Prior to the arrival of Pap, Huck sells his money to Judge Thatcher avoiding telling his father a lie (27). Even though his father is an appalling man and an alcoholic, Huck respects him and avoids lying to him by selling Ju...

    Read More

  • Huckleberry Finn Passage Analysis

    624 Words  | 2 Pages

    Mark Twain achieves his purpose of describing the natural world in the passage, “Miss Watson she kept … Tom Sawyer waiting for me” (2-3), in the novel The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The purpose of this passage was to show how the night reflects the loneliness in Huckleberry’s life by using imagery, diction, and tone.

    Read More

  • Analysis of Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

    1724 Words  | 4 Pages

    Huck Finn learns from the actions of people around him, what kind of a person he is going to be. He is both part of the society and an outlier of society, and as such he is given the opportunity to make his own decisions about what is right and what is wrong. There are two main groups of characters that help Huck on his journey to moral maturation. The first group consists of Widow Douglas, Miss Watson, and the judge. They portray society and strict adherence to rules laid out by authority. The second group consists of Pap, the King, and the Duke. They represent outliers of society who have chosen to alienate themselves from civilized life and follow no rules. While these characters all extremely important in Huck’s moral development, perhaps the most significant character is Jim, who is both a fatherly figure to Huck as well as his parallel as far as limited power and desire to escape. Even though by the end of the novel, Huck still does not want to be a part of society, he has made a many choices for himself concerning morality. Because Huck is allowed to live a civilized life with the Widow Douglas, he is not alienated like his father, who effectively hates civilization because he cannot be a part of it. He is not treated like a total outsider and does not feel ignorant or left behind. On the other hand, because he does not start out being a true member of the society, he is able to think for himself and dismiss the rules authority figures say are correct. By the end of the novel, Huck is no longer a slave to the rules of authority, nor is he an ignorant outsider who looks out only for himself. This shows Huck’s moral and psychological development, rendering the description of “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” as a picaresq...

    Read More

  • A Comparison Of The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn And A Wizard Of Earthsea

    592 Words  | 2 Pages

    In both Adventures of Huckleberry Finn and A Wizard of Earthsea, the protagonist begins his journey as a child. The actions they perform are a result of what little they know about the world. In Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Huck starts to get into some trouble from the start of his journey, but reacts with his conscience. When Huck and Jim steal the robbers’ boat, Huck starts to think about his actions and wants to help the robbers instead. Huck says: “I began to think how dreadful it was, even for murderers, to be in such a fix” (Twain, 54). By formulating a false story to help the robbers, Huck feels he performed a good act and Widow Douglas would be proud of him. He starts to evaluate all the conflicting rules that were set upon him, and although Huck wants to be independent and live his life his own way with no rules, he still remembers rig...

    Read More

  • Gatsby versus Huckleberry Finn: A Battle between the Two Greatest

    2352 Words  | 5 Pages

    Lies and deceit is a theme often seen in children’s books giving a lesson on the consequences they create, but instead, the authors have placed them in adult literature, for all know adults cannot resist the temptation as well. In The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, there are lies after ...

    Read More

More about Lies In Huckleberry Finn Analysis

Open Document